“I never felt any pressure to be or play like Randy. I only knew Randy as the guitar player for Ozzy”: How Carlos Cavazo became the guitarist who replaced Randy Rhoads in Quiet Riot – with the help of Randy Rhoads himself

In 1982, only a couple of years after they first disbanded, Quiet Riot reformed with a reshuffled lineup.

Headed up by original vocalist Kevin DuBrow, the new-look Quiet Riot featured drummer Frankie Banali, bassist Chuck Wright, and former Snow electric guitar player Carlos Cavazo, who was recruited to replace Randy Rhoads.

With Rhoads’ blessing, the group got to work recording new material under the Quiet Riot banner, and Cavazo set about filling the six-string shoes recently vacated by one of the fastest rising guitar stars of the ‘70s.

While many would find the prospect intimidating, Cavazo, it turns out, was surprisingly nonplussed: the pressure didn’t get to him one bit.

Speaking in the current issue of Guitar World, Cavazo retraced his Quiet Riot ride, and explained both how he managed to face up to the pressure that came with the role, and ended up replacing Randy Rhoads with the help of Rhoads himself.

“Snow had just broken up, and we were moving all our shit out of our house, trying to figure out what to do,” Cavazo begins. “As that was happening, out of nowhere, I got a call from Kevin, and he said, ‘Hey, man, we’re looking for a new guitar player for Quiet Riot. Would you be interested?’”

Cavazo was keen. Soon after the call, he was rehearsing with his future bandmates, already forming songs that would feature on their Metal Health album. According to the guitarist, “The chemistry was cool immediately, and things between us were great early on.”

But what put DuBrow on the path to Cavazo in the first place? Well, that was apparently down to Rhoads, who apparently name dropped the outgoing Snow guitarist as his potential replacement.

“In a way, Randy indirectly got me the gig,” Cavazo continues. “Apparently, Randy was the one who told Kevin, ‘Hey, you should check out this guy Carlos. A lot of my students are talking about him and saying he’s really good. Give him a call for Quiet Riot.’ Kevin got a hold of me through that grapevine.”

Once he joined the band, Cavazo quickly felt comfortable. The thought of replacing Rhoads didn't phase him.

Rhoads may have been a rapidly rising guitar star who'd go on to become one the most influential trailblazers of his time, but Cavazo concedes he wasn't too familiar with his playing in the early '80s – something that ultimately worked in his favor.

“I was definitely comfortable doing what I did best. People have to remember that at the time, Randy’s work with Quiet Riot was pretty unknown,” he concludes. “As far as I was concerned, I only knew Randy as the guitar player for Ozzy [Osbourne]. 

“So I never felt any pressure to be or play like Randy; I felt comfortable doing what I had been doing on the club scene with Snow. It seemed to work, and I think my not being influenced by Randy was good for the band and the record.”

Head over to Magazines Direct to pick up the latest issue of Guitar World, which features the full interview with Cavazo and an exclusive cover feature on Steve Vai and Joe Satriani.